Renowned civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson, who worked alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and twice ran for the presidency of the United States, has died at the age of 84.
In a statement shared with BBC News, Jackson’s family said he “died peacefully on Tuesday morning, surrounded by his family.” They added: “His unwavering commitment to justice, equality, and human rights helped shape a global movement for freedom and dignity. A tireless change agent, he elevated the voices of the voiceless from his Presidential campaigns in the 1980s to mobilising millions to register to vote – leaving an indelible mark on history.”
Born Jesse Louis Burns in 1941 in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson grew up under the Jim Crow laws of the American South. After graduating from Sterling High School in 1959, he briefly attended the University of Illinois on a football scholarship before transferring to North Carolina A&T. There, he played football, served as student body president, engaged in activism, and earned a degree in sociology. He later studied at the Chicago Theological Seminary and was ordained as a minister in 1968.
While still in college, Jackson began working with Dr. King and participated in the Selma to Montgomery marches. He established an office for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in Chicago and led its Operation Breadbasket, focusing on economic justice for Black communities. After internal disputes, Jackson and his team formed a new organization, People United to Serve Humanity (PUSH), which he led through the 1970s and early 1980s to create economic opportunities via political activism.
Jackson gained national prominence for his humanitarian efforts, including negotiating the release of American hostages in Syria and Cuba in the 1980s. He ran for president twice, in 1984 and 1988, sparking the Rainbow Coalition movement to advocate for social programs, voting rights, and affirmative action. Though he did not secure the Democratic nomination, his campaigns broadened the political discourse around economic and social justice.
Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Jackson remained active in global and domestic issues, negotiating hostage releases in Iraq and Yugoslavia, hosting CNN’s political talk show Both Sides With Jesse Jackson, and continuing to champion racial equality, voting rights, and economic opportunity through PUSH, which merged with the Rainbow Coalition in 1996.
In 2017, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, later confirmed as Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, leading him to step down from PUSH in 2023.
He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Jacqueline Jackson, their five children, Santita, Jesse Jr., Jonathan Luther, Yusef DuBois, and Jacqueline Lavinia, and his daughter Ashley.
Rev. Jesse Jackson’s legacy as a civil rights champion, political trailblazer, and tireless advocate for justice leaves an enduring mark on American history and the global fight for human rights.
